MEWAT: Over 1,000 farmers gathered together at Anaj Mandi in Nuh on Saturday. They battled the hot and humid weather as the former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda announced that the farmers have been suffering under Bhartiya Janta Party government.A kissan maha-panchayat was organised in Mewat on Saturday, in which villagers from over 400 villages in Mewat. The meeting was headed by former CM Hooda who said that 'the government first hit the farmer in the stomach and shoot them in the chest when they protest"."The prices of paddy have crashed but the prices of rice have not come down, the price of cotton have crashed but the prices of clothes has not come down, the cost of Poplar have crashed but the prices of plywood continue to remain high, the price of potatoes have crashed but the prices of potato chips have continued to go up, the prices of tomatoes have crashed while the prices of tomato sauce continues to go up," he said.There are around 433 villages in Mewat and farming is one of the primary occupations in these villages. Being a backward district, the farmers have been battling poverty here. They raised around 15 demands which were approved by farmers. They said that things have now become more difficult as the government changed a few policies in the recent months."They have imposed 18 per cent Goods and Service Tax on fertilizers , 12 per cent on pesticides and other farming products. These are huge expenses which increase the cost of the final produce," said Sulaiman, a farmer.The farmers say that they are not paid the full price of the produces. While the tomato is being sold for Rs 90 a kilo in the retail market, a farmer only gets 50 paise a kilo in the mandi. Similarly, they sell onion for Ru 1 a kilo, consumers buy it for Rs 60 a kilo. Why is there is no profit for the farmers, they ask.It has become a common practice at mandis that the farmers are asked to charge price lower than the rates fixed by the government. There is a malpractice but nobody pays attention to the poor famer's plight," added Mohammed Najib.Another major concern for the farmers is the crop damage compensation. They said that the government should compensate as per the recommendation of the Swaminathan report. For example, there is a recommendation of Rs 10,000 per acre compensation for crop damage due to whiteflies and hailstorm in the report . But the farmers say that they have been asked to get crop insurance done and pay the premium if they want to avail the compensation.Rohtak MP Deepdender Singh Hooda raised the issue of the Swaminathan Commission report and said "the BJP had promised to implement the recommendations made by the Commission from various platforms, including their election manifesto. The government, however, issued an affidavit saying that ensuring 50 per cent profits for farmers would distort the market prices".

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